Sunday, December 25, 2011

I don't think anyone who has been pregnant at Christmas, doesn't sympathize with the young virgin mother who managed to travel for days, if not weeks, on end just prior to delivering the world's greatest gift. But with all this travelling that we've done this year, I feel a bond with her.

And with that tiny baby who grew into the strongest man the world has ever known. The One. The Saviour of the world, made his entrance in an animal crowded cave in a town overrun with tired tourists.

Today, as we travel, with our little family in tow, I can't help but be thankful for the fact that they were willing. That the prophecies were fulfilled and the Saviour came for us.

A few weeks ago, I heard this song for the first time, and today I can't get it off my mind.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Unless I grow alot this week (which, considering the fact that all I want is pizza and taco bell, is a possibility), I am pretty sure that the difference is apparent.

But I'll leave that to you to decide.

(For those of you who may or may not be keeping track, I am 31 weeks and as of yesterday have only gained 30 lbs. - I blame the illness that kept me strapped to the bathroom floor for a good 12 hrs last week...but I'll take it!)

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

And surprisingly, being sick with a big baby in the belly isn't that different from getting sick every other time.

Needless to say I'm typing this from the comforts of my pillow on the bathroom floor.

Go me.

But today I have bigger things to say than just "woe is me I'm puking".because about the same time as I started getting sick last night our best friends in Delaware were rushing their one week old to the emergency room where they were told that he has an issue with his heart and will require emergency surgery today.

Suddenly praying to the porcelain god for a few hours isn't so bad....

So I've been using my "comfort"time here on the bathroom floor to pray for little Rocky,

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

But wittiness aside, I figured you would be hankering for a Black Friday recap from someone who seriously enjoys this almost as much as that dang Target lady.

And since I wouldn't want to let you down...

Most of you, I'm sure, were aware of the ridiculousness that was Black Friday shopping this year. And by that I mean the Black Thursday/ Thanksgiving craze.

So many mixed emotions about the retailers'decision to do what they did by starting things on Thanksgiving...but I'm not here to talk about the degradation of family holidays or the fact that I willingly took part in such a fiasco....

8:30 pm found my sister in law and I in walmart trying to find the items on our wish list....

And at 10 pm, I had scored a $30 storage ottoman, 6 sets of fleece pj's for $4.97 each, an elmo back pack for $7, a kiddie chair for the little man for $18, a $20 train set for someone who may or may not be a little obsessed with choo choo's, and a wide variety of uber cheap chick flicks.

Then we headed to Target. Where this very round, very pregnant, very cranky momma stood outside for over an hour without a coat in subarctic temperatures with my Michigan toughened sister in law who barely noticed the frost forming on the ends of our noses. But soon enough, we were in the doors and hunting for the bargains.

Within 10 minutes we had scored $3 kiddie hats, a $25 king sized duvet with a free cover, a $25 fire pit, and more cheap chick flicks.

By that time I was feeling very much like Jack from Titanic...you know, before the ice berg blew everything up. I was unstoppable. Queen of the world, even. Less than 12 hrs and enough money saved to make China think twice about questioning their investment.

Next came Belk. You northerners won't know what I'm talking about, but think a middle aged Kohl's sans Kohl's cash. It's a happy place. And I scored some pretty epic deals...including but not limited to $90 boots for $20. I had to suffer through a few moments of severe claustrophobia that only the likes of a twi-heart waiting to meet Robert Pattinson on opening day could ever understand, but $20 boots are soooo worth it.

Next it was Penneys for another few epic deals-I mean seriously, pashmina's for $6....

And then, finally, breakfast.

And guess what? I totally pulled a Jack from Titanic and fell asleep in my ice water.

Because apparently, momma can only handle so much excitement on 1 hour sleep.

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

There's an end in sight...or a beginning... However you would view it.

What I'm trying to say is that as of Thursday, we will be living in a house.... As in by ourselves.... As in unpacking our stuff and calling the place home until spring at least.

No more living out of a suitcase.

I know it sounds less than awesome, but trust me, when you've been watching youtubed mickey mouse on your ipad for 3 months, a real live house with a real live tv to watch Disney channel can really be heavenly.

I wish I had a pic to post of our new home, but this baby is stealing my brain cells and in case you haven't noticed, I keep forgetting I have a blog. Oops!

And just to keep things interesting, what's say we add in an FHA inspector?

Fun, right?

If your idea of fun is a picnic in a fire ant infested park with a screaming 2 year old....

Or maybe having a cavity filled?

Anyway, you get the idea right?

We were dreading the inspection.

And rightly so.

Because at the end of the day, we were facing something we had never even considered...

A garage floor would have been expected...

But they wanted us to replace all the pipes in the house because they were prone to leaking...

Read that again...

PRONE to leaking.

As in not actually leaking.

As in this type of pipe may leak and therefore, blah, blah, blah....

And the price tag?

$5,000.

Oh and that doesn't even factor in the costs of drywall repair...that's just pipes.

Now, here's where I tell you the reality of it all.

You see, part of me, a very small part, believed deeply - to the core of my soul - that this crazy endeavor of ours was an ornate plan designed by God for something bigger. I don't know what, but SOMETHING.

So on Friday, when we got the call I sat in stunned confusion.

And yet, I still believed.

I refused to give up.

And on Sunday, when the chords of "Our God is Greater" started, tears were rolling down my face.

Because I knew.

I believed.

I was so sure that this was Him.

Giving me the opportunity to trust.

So on Monday when that phone call came, verifying that the would-be buyers had accepted our last ditch efforts of throwing another (our last) $2,000 at them, I wasn't surprised.

I was thankful.

And when I pulled into my kids non-Christian daycare and saw that they had updated their sign to say this...

My only thought was, "He really is, isn't He?"

No one promised this journey would be easy or leave us not wanting for anything.

Thanks to Swagbucks, I have managed to sock away almost $100 in Amazon Gift Cards over the last few months to help with Christmas shopping.

And for those of you who are like, "How on earth?" I'll tell you.

Referrals - when you post the link to Facebook and get referrals, you can earn some major Swagbucks.

Searching - I do alot of my searching at random times of day. Like if I wake up to go to the bathroom (that happens alot these days!!!) in the middle of the night. I have the app on my phone and will usually only have to search once or twice to win some bucks.

Surveys - Here's where I cash in the most. If you have access to a computer throughout the day, and you have time to check back at their site randomly, you can almost always find a survey or 2 that you will qualify for. (Hint: make sure you complete your "survey profiles" so you are almost always pre-qualified for the surveys that are available to you...)

In the past few months, I have gotten Amazon gift cards for half off, gift cards for free, as well as the Target deal that I mentioned above.

And I can only imagine that over the next few weeks, we will see an increase in discounted gift cards as suppliers are trying to ramp up for holiday sales...

Be ready to take advantage!

4. Shop the Big Sales!

I know, I know. It's a given.

But we are {eagerly} approaching one of the best season for sales all year long.

And some of the best sales are before Black Friday.

(I will never forget the year that Walmart offered laptops for $199 two weeks before Black Friday. My mom stood in line and bought 5 of them, then turned around and sold them on Ebay thus making enough money to pay for Christmas. Just saying...)